Nailed It!

I love so many of the sets in this new Occasions Catalogue but of course like everyone else I dont have an endless budget so I looked to fill gaps in my collection instead. The biggest gap, and I think it is for many of us, is stamp sets for Masculine cards so I chose this one. Nailed It

How cute… um I mean MANLY is that. I love the little faces so you can change it up for a small man child or a humorous card. I had a special order for Birthday invites (which I cant share right now) and used a simple sketch which I thought would really suit these set so here it is. I love how the background of screws came out and the colours are great!

Check out Nailed it on page 48 of the Occasions Catalogue. The sentiment is from another new set called Love Sparkles which is on page 53.  You can see the catalogue online HERE or ask me for a paper copy.

Just in case you missed out on any of the goodies from the Holidays Catalogue some of the products have “Carried Over” and are still available for purchase.

Creativity is Contagious, pass it on!

Today I’m talking to all those people out there who look at lovely cards or scrapbooking pages or any craft really and say “I’d love to do that but I’M NOT CREATIVE.”

Well people I’m here to tell you we  ALL have the ability to be creative. I’ve found some quotes that say it better than I can so take a look at these. This is gonna be a long one so go grab a cuppa before you start reading.

 

Creativity is simply the human brain forming new connections between ideas, and we all are engaged in this process every day. The common idea that there are some people who are creative and some who are not is a myth. On some level, we are all artists. We are all creators.  -Michael Gungor

Creativity isn’t this big scary thing, its learning and growing and playing; it’s trying new things and laughing at your disasters and every now and then creating something so amazing you’re blown away. Everyone had to start somewhere and everyone takes their inspiration from someone else so be inspired and you might just inspire someone else : )

An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail – Edwin Land

You might think I’m pretty talented (or even just a little bit talented I hope) BUT it took me a long time to feel confident to put my work on display and what you’re seeing on here is generally the successes not the disasters that get buried deep in the rubbish bin. Not every card is a masterpiece. I’m not perfect and sometimes I get it wrong but that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop creating!

A key part of being creative is seeing potential in things. Start with yourself and work your way out! – Colin Wright

Creativity is not a competition.

Oh and the post title is from a clever chappy called Albert Einstein. He also said Creativity is Intelligence having Fun!

So if you are in the Christchurch – Selwyn Area and need some help finding your creativity then feel free to contact me. I can do one on one appointments, classes, parties for you and some friends or you can come to my stamping days. Id love to hear from you! If your further afield you can still benefit from my newsletter, blog and Facebook pages and I am happy to send orders to you anywhere in New Zealand. I shall leave you with a quote from one of my favourite authors who can always help you make sense of the world – Dr. Seuss

Just so you don’t forget what a card looks like!

Here are two cards using one of the SaleABration stamp sets called Perfect Pairings. The first one also uses a stamp from Timeless Textures, also Paper and enamel dots from the Its My Party suite (Occasions catalogue) The second card uses the cupcake punch from the Party Punch Pack.

 

Just Typical!

I have found myself home for an hour so unexpectedly from camping and thought I could do a quick post to share some of the cute cards I have made with the new product BUT my camera, with all the photos on it is still at camp so instead here is a close up of the graphic from the front of the Sale A Bration Flyer.  

Stampin’ Up! has also put together some short videos full of great ideas for some of the SAB products. Check them out here.

Botanical Gardens Designer Vellum Stack
What I Love Stamp Set
Project Life Memories in the Making Specialty Card Collection

Brick Wall Flash

A quick and easy design which looks really elegant with the ribbon border. The Brick Wall Embossing Folder adds a bit of texture and dimension to the card. It is in the new 6X6″ design which allows you to run the design up the card or across it.  I love the Cottage Greetings set, it has the most gorgeous script style sentiments with matching complementing sentiments for inside the card or just to add to the bigger ones.

Top Tip: Stamp the flowers and sentiment before you punch them out so you can get them nicely positioned in the shape.

 

Cute Note cards

A pair of cute note cards for you today still using up the scraps. I added the 3 squares to the front offset to the left. Then I added a skinny strip to each edge of the squares. I used Cottage Greetings to complete one card and Sprinkles of Life for the other one

 

Happy Birthday Throwdown

Hi folks I loved the colours in The Colour Throwdown Challenge this week and had seen a sketch for a card I wanted to try then the planets aligned and a card was created. Here are the colours

I used So Saffron, Blushing Bride, Pumpkin Pie and Pistachio Pudding.

The sentiment and flower are from a very flexible and super useful stamp in the Occasions Catalogue called Crazy About You. It coordinates with a Thinlit die set called Hello You, both are available as a bundle which saves you 15%. Of course I wasnt bright enough to do that! But Wow those dies are so fun, I even made something with the negative from Happy. You might get to see that tomorrow if I remember to post it!

Check back after 7 tonight for a Faves Farewell Blog Hop showcasing retiring product from Stampin’ Up!

Cardmaking for the time impaired

This is a great new release by Stampin’ Up! called the Hip Hip Hooray Card Kit #134998 Price: $38.95 The blurb says: “You’ve got 20 cards at your fingertips. They’re thoughtful, they’re beautiful, they’re handmade, and they take just minutes to make! The Hip Hip Hooray Card Kit contains everything you need (minus scissors) to create 20 beautiful cards for a variety of occasions. The kit is excellent for people who are just getting started as papercrafters, and also makes a great gift! “

 This awesome product will be included in the  next Annual catalogue so its here to stay. 

The Hip Hip Hooray Card Kit includes: 

* Cardstock and envelopes for 20 cards  * Twine, clips, and adhesive die-cut embellishments * Stampin Dimensionals  * Basic Gray Stampin’ Spot (mini ink pads) * Full-color instructional brochure * Three-piece Hip Hip Hooray Stamp Set & clear stamp block 

And here are the 20 cards you can create all for $38.95 plus shipping

3 days left

What an awesome way to celebrate Stampin’ Up!’s 25th birthday! 25% off 25 Stamp sets!

For a PDF with full listing and pricing click HERE or view with pictures online HERE
Sets are: A Dozen Thoughts, Zoo Babies Of course my set arrived last week LOL), Lots of Thanks, Happy Day, Gifts of Kindness, Hearts a Flutter, Hello Lovely, Crazy Mixed Up Love, Bright Blossoms, Itty Bitty Banners, Yippee-Skippee, Gorgeous Grunge, Ornament Keepsakes, Apothecary Art, Cuddles and Kisses, Oh Hello and Label Love!

What a great selection I know I will be getting a couple of them and already have a couple too!
Remember you can do an online order 24/7 through my online shop HERE and the great thing is you dont have to create an account anymore if you dont want to, you can use a Guest Account instead.
IF you are doing an online order please use the HOSTESS CODE  2ZE2K49S

Here are some projects I have made with the sets I have

Bright Blossoms

 

Itty Bitty Banners

And some cards that were swaps using these sets

Gorgeous Grunge Swaps created by:  Front – Ria Kaire &  Back – (fabulous ladies from my wider team who shall have to remain nameless until I go out to the car and retrieve the rest of my display boards in the morning)

Three of these cards use Label Love and  two use Hello Lovely as well!

 Another Hello Lovely with this card by Julia Leece proving its not just a set for Ladies cards!

Happy Scrappy Results

Sorry I didn’t get this post up yesterday, life has this horrible way of jumping in front of me when I plan things. But here we are a day late : )

This is what I did with the 5 of the 6 pieces I showed you on Thursday. Somewhere along the line I misplaced one but I have found it now so maybe tomorrow…..

Back Row: A little Crazy Patched piece that I embossed using the Square Lattice folder (stamp from Bring on the Cake); A cool wee Patchwork square which I added pen  stitching lines to (Stamp from Best of.. Christmas) ; Lastly another Patchwork inspired pattern (stamp from Petite pairs)

Front: Striped pattern with various sized strips then paper pierced and faux stitched Zig Zag stitching in Early Espresso (Stamp from So Sorry); Bargello inspired strips placed in a chevron (Stamp from Tag It)

My fav I think is the So Sorry Card

Which is yours??